Do I have an eating disorder?

Food is often a focal point within Middle Eastern Culture. Most social gatherings are planned in restaurants, and all celebrations, gatherings, and events need to include an excessively large amount and variety of food. As such, it is safe to say that our lives largely revolve around what and when we are going to eat. With such a huge focus on our “food culture”, it may be difficult to establish a good relationship with food and the lines may be blurred between what is considered a healthy or unhealthy relationship with food.

How do you know when an unhealthy eating pattern is starting to develop into an eating disorder?

An eating disorder can be officially identified when your eating patterns and your relationship with food as a whole are causing a wide range of problems. The repercussions of an eating disorder go far beyond physical health problems; an eating disorder can heavily impact many aspects of your life. When the idea of eating, or the concept of food in general, takes up a great deal of your thoughts, time, and/or effort, it could indicate a struggle with an eating disorder. You may be constantly thinking about how you’re not satisfied with the way you look, and, therefore, think you need to change your eating patterns. You may find yourself regularly and excessively exercising, whilst thinking about your daily food intake, in an attempt to “balance out” what you had eaten. There is sometimes an extreme of either always wanting food, or always fearing it. This means that you can either always want to eat food and can’t seem to get enough of it, or, on the other hand, you can purposely start going into starvation mode and try to consume the least amount of food possible simply just to survive, out of fear of gaining weight. Both extreme behaviours are not healthy and are not sustainable for one’s mental and physical well-being because in both cases, one’s perception of food is completely altered, and one cannot stop thinking about food and what their next meal will be. When struggling with an eating disorder you may find yourself undergoing obsessive thoughts involving food and planning your life accordingly. For example, if you fear food, you may obsess over things like whether or not you should go to a certain outing because you don’t want to fall into temptation and eat with everyone else. You may also feel guilty if you eat more than the number of calories that you have previously set for yourself (which is usually an insufficient amount). Afterwards, to make up for the “extra” calories that you have consumed, you could then deprive yourself of eating another meal that day. Eating disorders are classified as anxiety disorders and they are more focused on obsessive thoughts regarding food. These thoughts mainly deal with what a person eats every day, if their weight is going up or down on the scale, and their overall body image and self-esteem. People who have eating disorders will often train themselves to stop eating, completely cut down certain foods from their diets, and minimize their overall food intake. They usually do this because they want to feel in control over how their body looks or over how they feel. As they may feel that it’s difficult for them to take control over other aspects of their lives, they may then try to make up for this by having complete control over what and how much they eat. Sometimes, individuals who have an eating disorder tend to feel guilty and ashamed when they lose control over their diet.

What are the different types of eating disorders?

Anorexia nervosa

Anorexia nervosa involves intense fear and preoccupation with controlling their calorie intake and gaining weight, which leads people to diet and exercise excessively. They often view their body image through an inaccurate lens and believe that they are overweight, when in fact they are usually underweight. The signs may be very subtle at the beginning, as they gradually develop. Some signs to look out for:

Drastic weight loss
Wearing loose clothes to hide one’s body
Preoccupation with food
Constantly worrying about being fat
Frequent conversations revolving around losing weight
Avoiding certain foods such as carbs
Overly exercising
Inconsistent menstruation
Overly restrictive diet

Bulimia nervosa

Bulimia nervosa involves instances of binge eating significant large amounts of food and then following them with purging behaviours. There is the same preoccupation with food intake and inaccurate body image. Some signs include:

Binge eating evidence; e.g., large amounts of food disappearing in a short time
Purging evidence; e.g., packages of laxatives
Overly exercising
Constantly worrying about being fat
Frequent conversations revolving around losing weight
Excessively using gum, mouthwash, or mints
Calluses on their knuckles from inducing vomiting

Binge-eating disorder

Those exhibiting binge-eating disorder will experience instances of uncontrollable binging, which later causes feelings of guilt or shame. They, however, do not use purging behaviours, which may cause them to become overweight as time passes. Some of the signs are:

Binge eating evidence
Hoarding food
Skipping meals
Avoid eating in front of others
Dieting but without losing weight

Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder

This occurs when an individual avoids certain foods due to their texture, odour, taste, or colour. It does not involve a fear of gaining weight, however, there is a risk of not meeting the minimum daily nutrition requirement due to the avoidant/restrictive behaviours.

Pica

Pica involves consistently eating items that are not food and that have no nutritional value, such as paper, paint, soap, chalk, or clay. While individuals aren't likely to avoid food in general, they are risking the dangers of intestinal blockages or toxic effects from the items that are consumed.

It’s important to seek help if you or your loved one is displaying any signs of an eating disorder

Eating disorders are one of the most life-threatening mental health disorders and can contribute to several other problems such as drastic health problems, depression, anxiety, suicidal thoughts or behaviour, problems with growth and development, relationship problems, or substance abuse.

Do I have an eating disorder?

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